Satellite imaging to delineate NE borders

NEW DELHI, Aug 1: The Centre has decided to demarcate boundaries of the Northeastern states through satellite imaging to settle interstate border disputes that are often becoming a cause of concern and sometimes even leading to violence.
Two senior government functionaries said the task has been given to the Umiam-based North Eastern Space Application Centre (NESAC), a joint initiative of the Department of Space (DoS) and the North Eastern Council (NEC).
The NESAC helps augment the developmental process in the Northeastern region by providing advanced space technology support.
The interstate border disputes have come under fresh focus recently after six Assam Police personnel and a civilian were killed in clashes along the Assam-Mizoram border.
The idea for demarcation of interstate boundaries through satellite imaging was mooted by Union Home Minister Amit Shah a few months ago. Shah had suggested roping in NESAC for mapping the interstate borders and forests in the Northeastern region and coming up with a scientific demarcation of boundaries between states.
NESAC is already using space technology for flood management in the region. Since there will be scientific methods in the demarcation of borders, there will no scope for any discrepancy and there shall be better acceptability of the boundary solutions by the states, the government functionaries said.
Once the satellite mapping is done, fresh boundaries of the Northeastern states could be drawn and the disputes could be resolved permanently, they said. (PTI)